Department for Transport

Driving under Influence: Prosecutions

Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have any plans to collect annual figures for the prosecution of incidents of drink driving which involve a casualty.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The Ministry of Justice collect statistics on the prosecution of drink drive offences and The Department for Transport collects casualty statistics involving drink driving. These statistics are published on GOV.UK The Department is working with the Ministry of Justice to see if we can make the link between drink drive prosecutions and casualties. If that is possible we intend to publish the results.

Southern

Baroness Gould of Potternewton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with Southern Rail to ensure that there are adequate support services for the elderly and disabled, particularly at times of reduced service.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: Officials meet regularly with franchisees, and at these meetings assistance for passengers at such times may be one of the discussion topics. Each operator is required to participate in the Passenger Assist system which allows passengers to book staff assistance when they require it, and we expect Southern to ensure that passengers receive that assistance when required at all times.

Southern: Compensation

Baroness Gould of Potternewton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether Southern Rail has made, or is considering, any proposal to provide compensation for regular passengers who do not hold a season ticket.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: Holders of day tickets are able to claim compensation through the Delay Repay scheme. On 11 December we introduced Delay Repay 15 which applies to passengers with day single and return tickets as well as to season ticket holders. All passengers are able to claim 25% of the cost of the single fare for delays between 15 and 29 minutes. The existing compensation thresholds will apply for delays from 30 minutes with passengers able to apply for compensation through the train operating company. Delay Repay from 30 minutes is already one of the most generous compensation schemes in Europe.

East Coast Railway Line

Lord Shipley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what proportion of the new InterCity train sets allocated to the East Coast franchise will be (1) hybrid trains and (2) electric trains.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: Based on the assumption that ‘Hybrid’ relates to the Bi-mode trains (i.e. those using both diesel and electric traction power), we can confirm that of the 65 sets allocated to East Coast, the proportions will be 23 Bi-modes and 42 Electric sets.

Motor Vehicles: Insurance

Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in pursuing the negotiations for Brexit, whether they will maintain the UK's reciprocity under the Brussels 1 Regulation and the Motor Insurance Directive to allow victims of accidents to use their domestic courts to pursue insurance claims after an accident in another member state.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: We want the best deal possible for the UK upon leaving the EU. The Department for Transport which has policy responsibility for motor insurance and the Ministry of Justice which leads on civil judicial cooperation (including the Brussels I recast Regulation), have been working closely with the Department for Exiting the European Union to consider options for the future relationship between the UK and the EU.

Aviation: Compensation

Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in pursuing the negotiations for Brexit, whether they will seek to retain the ability of passengers flying in the EU to claim compensation for delays and cancellations through EC Regulation 261/2004.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The Government is considering the impacts of the decision to leave the European Union, including future arrangements for existing legislation. Until the UK leaves, EU law continues to apply, so we continue to comply with the existing directives and regulations, such as the common rules on compensation and assistance under Regulation (EC) 261/2004. This government remains committed to putting passengers at the heart of our transport policy and ensuring we have the right regime for passenger rights in place.

Railway Stations: Wheelchairs

Lord Blencathra: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the platform height restrictions set by the European Rail Agency on disabled passengers in wheelchairs; and whether they have any plans to vary these height restrictions.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The current European Technical Specification for Interoperability (TSI) for Infrastructure allows platform heights of 550 mm or 760 mm above rail level. However, the UK currently has a national technical rule which includes a ‘specific case’ allowing platform heights of 915 mm, reflecting the historic platform height on the majority of our existing network. We are considering the issue of optimum platform heights to assist persons with reduced mobility and other passengers boarding trains. We have proposed to the European Commission an amendment to the current TSI to allow higher platform heights as a means to achieve level boarding between platforms and trains. These discussions are still ongoing.

River Exe: Flood Control

Lord Berkeley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 14 December (HL3737), when the Environment Agency intends to remove the weirs obstructing the flood water upstream of Cowley Bridge.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The removal of weirs in the River Exe is not part of the Environment Agency’s scheme to better protect the communities in the city of Exeter from flooding. The option of removal of the three weirs at Exwick, Cowley and Pynes is being examined by Network Rail as the last stage of its work to help protect the railway at Cowley Bridge Junction (just north of Exeter) from flooding from the rivers Exe, Culm and Creedy. Subject to a detailed assessment of the impact of such a scheme of the wider area to be carried out by Network Rail, consent from the Environment Agency and funding availability, a weir scheme could follow on from work to widen and improve the existing flood culvert during 2017 and install an additional culvert in 2018.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Lord Moonie: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their estimate of the current maximum passenger carrying capacity from London to Birmingham by rail; and how much additional capacity they estimate will be added by HS2.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The Department for Transport considered the impact of HS2 on the West Coast Main Line rail corridor in the Supplement to the October 2013 Strategic Case for HS2. The increase in peak-time seats on Birmingham services associated with HS2 (the Phase 2 “Y“ shaped network) was estimated at 97% compared to today’s capacity. HS2 was also estimated to increase PM-peak, standard-class seats from Euston from 15,869 to 39,566 across all Intercity West Coast (ICWC) services.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Lord Moonie: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what are the target dates for opening each stage of HS2 to passenger travel.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: Phase 1 (London to West Midlands) of HS2 is scheduled to open to passengers in 2026, Phase 2a (West Midlands to Crewe) in 2027, and the rest of Phase 2 (Crewe to Manchester and West Midlands to Yorkshire) in 2033. The project remains on time and on budget.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Lord Berkeley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are still committed to the £55.7 billion allocated in the 2015 Spending Review for HS2 and, if so, what are the budgets for (1) purchase of rolling stock, and (2) all development, construction and commissioning work for Phase 1, Phase 2A and Phase 2B.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: Spending Review 2015 set a long term funding envelope for HS2 of £55.7 billion in 2015 prices. The Government remains committed to delivering HS2 within this funding envelope. A breakdown of the funding envelope, with and without contingency, has been provided below: £ billion, 2015 PricesPhase OnePhase 2aPhase 2bRolling StockTotalWithout contingency18.02.714.75.440.8With contingency24.33.720.77.055.7

Unmanned Air Vehicles

Lord Blencathra: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to remove restrictions on the acquisition of equipment by members of the public which is capable of disabling or destroying drones flying over their property.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The Government recognises that an increase in the popularity of small drones, including those with cameras, raises a number of questions about privacy, safety, security, and data protection. Safety, security and privacy must always be the overriding priority and both commercial and leisure operators must operate drones responsibly within the rules. The Government is today launching a consultation to determine if further measures are needed in this area.

Unmanned Air Vehicles

Lord Blencathra: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by the Minister of State for Transport on 10 September 2015 (HC7971), what action the cross-government working group has taken to reduce the risks posed by drones to civil aviation; and whether they plan to consult on the introduction of new criminal offences relating to (1) causing a nuisance, (2) endangering persons on the ground, and (3) endangering aircraft, through use of a drone.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: We have been working closely with the Civil Aviation Authority and industry to adapt and strengthen regulations and implement mitigations as drones use and the related technology evolves. This has led to a new safety awareness campaign aimed at leisure drone users. So far, this has included the launch of a new www.dronesafe.uk website, a #400ftBritain drone photography competition that highlights safety rules, and a free new app ‘Drone Assist’ by NATS, which shows users where they should and should not fly in their locality. There are already offences to deter and, if necessary, prosecute operators for malicious or negligent use, including a prison sentence of up to five years for endangering an aircraft. The Government is today launching a consultation to determine if further measures are needed in this area.

Department for Communities and Local Government

Community Relations

Lord Mawson: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what they are doing to encourage local agencies, both statutory and non-statutory, to provide more integrated local services.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: This Government fully supports the provision of more integrated local services.The Better Care Fund, for example, is enabling local areas to integrate and transform local health and social care services by 2020. Clinical Commissioning Groups and local authorities pool budgets and agree together how to focus funding to support more person-centred, coordinated care, so people can manage their own health and wellbeing and live independently in their communities for as long as possible, relieving the pressure on acute services. There are 150 Better Care Fund plans, covering each Health and Wellbeing Board area of England. In 2016-17, the Better Care Fund is funding 1,326 schemes across all local authorities with the largest focus for schemes being in developing integrated care solutions.The Troubled Families Programme also encourages a different, more effective way for public services to work with families who place a disproportionate burden on them. By doing so, it helps to reduce demand and dependency of complex families on costly reactive public services and deliver better value for the taxpayer. This ‘service transformation’ in early help for complex families, which encourages the integration of local services, is an explicit aim of the programme. On 17th November, guidance for local authorities and their partners was published that sets out the key principles of, and ways to assess, service transformation in early help services for complex families.There are also a number of public service reform related commitments in devolution deals, including around accelerating partnership working on the integration of health and social care; innovative employment trials; improving integration of employment support with other local services such as health; greater local influence over public protection including offender management and rehabilitation; and a range of other commitments to transformation and improvement in areas such as children’s services.

Landlords: Databases

Baroness Grender: To ask Her Majesty’s Government when the database of rogue landlords and property agents provided for in the Housing and Planning Act 2016 will be published.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: The Government is planning to introduce the database of rogue landlords and property agents with effect from 1 October 2017.

Landlords: Databases

Baroness Grender: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the database of rogue landlords and property agents provided for in the Housing and Planning Act 2016 will include all rogue landlords who have committed an offence or only those who have been banned.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: The database of rogue landlords and property agents will contain details of landlords and property agents who have been served with a banning order, or have been convicted of a banning order offence, or have received two or more civil penalties.

Private Rented Housing: Fees and Charges

Baroness Grender: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the ban on letting fees charged to tenants which was announced in the Autumn Statement will include all fees and whether it will apply throughout a tenant’s residency.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: While most letting and managing agents provide a good service, a minority of agents offer a poor service and engage in unacceptable practices. The government is keen to see tenants receiving a good service from their landlord and letting agent and that is why we announced in the Autumn Statement a ban on letting agent fees paid by tenants in England. This will support better competition in the market and bring down overall costs. Tenants will be better able to search around for properties that suit their budget and there will be no hidden costs. This may be preferable to tenants being hit with upfront charges that can be difficult for them to afford. The government will consult in the New Year on the detail of how best to implement a ban.

Private Rented Housing: Fees and Charges

Baroness Grender: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether letting agents that continue to charge fees after the ban announced in the Autumn Statement has been introduced will be listed on the database of rogue landlords and property agents provided for in the Housing and Planning Act 2016.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: The Government will be consulting shortly on which criminal offences should be regarded as banning order offences and be included on the database.

Housing: Construction

Baroness Smith of Basildon: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by Lord Young of Cookham on 23 November (HL Deb, col 1937), (1) what assessment they have made, and will make, of successfully bringing small builders back into the housing market, (2) how many small building companies have been involved in the project, and (3) where the small building firms are located.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: £1.7 billion of investment for Accelerated Construction was announced at the Autumn Statement. This will see up to 15,000 homes started on surplus public sector land this Parliament.We are currently undertaking detailed project scoping. Further details about the programme will be made available on completion of this work.Furthermore, the recently launched £3 billion Home Building Fund, running to 2020-21 provides development and infrastructure loan finance, with £1 billion of this targeted at small and custom builders which the Department intends to deliver 25,500 new homes by 2020.

Social Rented Housing

Baroness Smith of Basildon: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth on 24 November (HL Deb, col 2050), what is the new information regarding pay to stay that led to a change of policy.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: I refer my noble friend to the Written Statement laid (attached) on the 21 November. The statement can be viewed on line at: http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-statement/Lords/2016-11-21/HLWS274/ 



Social Housing WMS - HLWS274
(PDF Document, 80.42 KB)

Housing and Planning Act 2016

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth on 29 November (HL 3353), what is the composition of the eight working groups that have been established since the passing of the Housing and Planning Act 2016.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: The eight working groups that have been established since the passing of the Housing & Planning Act 2016 are made up of a wide range of stakeholders including industries, Local Government and third sector organisations. The working groups are:Starter Homes Working GroupsHousing Tenure Information Working GroupPrivate Rented Sector Electrical Safety Working GroupClient Money Protection Working GroupSecure Tenancies Working GroupThe IT Consultative working GroupDCLG Fraud Working GroupIncome Based Rents for Social Tenants Working Group (no longer in operation)

Housing and Planning Act 2016

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth on 29 November (HL3354), which organisations have responded to the public consultation since the Housing and Planning Act 2016 came into force.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: We have had responses from over 600 organisations to the public consultation since the Housing and Planning Act 2016 came into force, including a range of housing groups, councils, and charities.

Local Government: Private Sector

Lord Storey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of (1) Liverpool City Council support for the Project Enterprise Village initiative, and (2) the Insolvency Service investigation and subsequent disqualification undertaking banning Shazan Qureshi from acting as a company director, whether they will issue guidance to local authorities to ensure that a local authority acting as an accountable body in any private company-led funding application undertakes full background and bankruptcy checks on all company directors.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: All local authorities should act responsibly when entering into business with, or supporting, independent organisations or businesses. Local authorities are stewards of public assets, including taxpayers’ money, and should demonstrate due diligence and secure value for money for the taxpayer when using public funds.

Housing: Construction

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to promote sustainable drainage in new house building.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: Planning policy expects that Sustainable Drainage Systems are to be provided in all major new developments (e.g. 10 dwellings or more), unless demonstrated to be inappropriate. This is in addition to existing policy that expects developments (both major or minor) in flood risk areas to give priority to the use of Sustainable Drainage Systems.My Department, in collaboration with Defra, are currently undertaking a targeted review of national and local planning policy on Sustainable Drainage Systems to gauge the extent to which they have been successful in encouraging take-up of such drainage systems in new development.

Housing: Construction

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to promote energy efficiency in new house building.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: In the last Parliament, we strengthened the energy standards for new homes by over 30 per cent. New homes built to these demanding standards are reducing bills and saving carbon.The government has a duty under the Housing and Planning Act 2016 to carry out a review of the energy performance requirements for new homes in the Building Regulations. We have started work on this review and the outcome will be used to help determine whether any further strengthening of energy performance standards is required.

Citizenship

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to initiate a national dialogue for Britain to discuss common citizenship, with active participation by people of all traditions and origins.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: In publishing her review of Integration and Opportunity, Dame Louise Casey expressed hope that her report will spark a national conversation about improving the integration of communities in Britain, including establishing a set of values around which people from all different backgrounds can unite.My Right Honourable Friend, Sajid Javid, the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, has made clear he will carefully consider the findings of Dame Louise’s review, in consultation with his Government colleagues and faith and other community leaders and will bring forward proposals in the spring.

World War II: Genocide

Baroness Whitaker: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth on 12 December (HL3686), when the consultation on the design competition for the Holocaust memorial will begin, and which Roma organisations will be consulted on the competition.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: The new Holocaust Memorial will stand as a statement of our commitment to remember the Holocaust and, crucially as a statement of determination to stand up to prejudice and hatred of all kinds. While the focus of the Memorial will be on the persecution and murder of 6 millions European Jews, it will also appropriately represent the experiences of the Roma/Sinti and of all groups persecuted by the Nazis. It is therefore vital that representatives of all victims of Nazi persecution are able to have their say on what the Memorial looks like.Once the shortlisted designs are received for the Memorial, the UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation will hold exhibitions and consultations all around the United Kingdom, providing all people with an opportunity to connect.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Radioactive Waste

Lord Judd: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they still intend to take steps to ensure that any site proposed by them for a national nuclear waste repository will be dependent on the approval and consent of all the relevant local, county and regional authorities.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: The Government is committed to a consent based approach for siting a geological disposal facility, which will involve working with communities that are willing to participate in the siting process. In the 2014 Geological Disposal White Paper Government recognised that local representative bodies – including all levels of local government – will need to have a voice in this process. In addition, a Geological Disposal Facility and associated boreholes have been brought within the definition of Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects under the Planning Act 2008. The development consent process for Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects places specific requirements on the developer to consult local communities, local authorities, statutory bodies, and other interested parties before any application for development consent is made.

Consumers: Protection

Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in pursuing the negotiations for Brexit, whether they will negotiate to maintain the UK's membership of the Consumer Protection Cooperation Network and the Rapid Alert System.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: Departments are currently working with stakeholders to understand the impacts that withdrawal from the EU will have on businesses, consumers and other economic actors - we will work to ensure the best possible outcome for UK consumers.

Drugs: Research

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the report by Deloitte concerning the level of return from research and development among the biggest drug companies.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: We are aware of the trend in the decline in research and development returns reported by Deloitte in its report “Measuring the return from pharmaceutical innovation 2016”. This is part of an established trend.Working with industry through the Life Sciences Strategy we want to make sure the UK is the best place in the world to develop and launch new medicines.Government is already taking action in key areas that will benefit the life sciences sector, such as the recent announcement of an extra £2bn a year for R&D by the end of this Parliament including a new Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund. We are also providing £100m of funding to extend and enhance the Biomedical Catalyst, supporting innovative life science companies to translate cutting-edge medical technologies into commercial success.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Bahrain: Capital Punishment

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether, during her recent visit to Bahrain, the Prime Minister raised with the government of Bahrain the cases of Mohammed Ramadan and eight others who face the death penalty, after convictions based on evidence alleged to have been extracted by torture; and if so, with what result.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: It is our longstanding policy to oppose the death penalty in all circumstances in every country. Its use undermines human dignity, has no value as a deterrent and any miscarriage of justice in capital cases is irreparable. We continue to raise this issue with the government of Bahrain at senior levels.The Foreign and Commonwealth Office and our Embassy in Bahrain closely monitor a number of cases, including the ones mentioned in his question. We continue to encourage the government of Bahrain to deliver on its international and domestic human rights commitments. We have raised concerns both in public and in private, by having frank discussions including at the most senior levels. The Prime Minister, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Maidenhead (Mrs May) was very clear during her visit that we want to see Gulf states embed international norms and see through essential reforms.

Cabinet Office

Public Service: Ombudsman

Lord Lester of Herne Hill: To ask Her Majesty’s Government why the draft Public Service Ombudsman Bill, Cm 9374, published on 5 December, does not make provision for findings of maladministration and recommendations to be made binding on government departments and other public bodies.

Baroness Chisholm of Owlpen: The draft Bill requires the Ombudsman to send a statement setting out her findings and any recommendations to the department or public body in question. As now, it will be for the department or public body to decide whether and how to give effect to any such recommendations. The legislation retains existing powers that allow the Ombudsman to draw attention to unremedied hardship or injustice where she considers it has not been or will not be put right.This is a significant power that includes the ability to require information about how a designated authority will respond to the Ombudsman's findings and to bring that information to the attention of others – for example, by laying the report before Parliament or sending it to members of a local authority.

Public Service: Ombudsman

Lord Lester of Herne Hill: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to provide for a member of the House of Lords, as well as members of the House of Commons, to be entitled under the draft Public Service Ombudsman Bill to make a complaint to the Ombudsman if authorised by the affected person to act on the affected person's behalf.

Baroness Chisholm of Owlpen: Clause 5 of the draft Public Service Ombudsman Bill entitles any person who is authorised by the affected person to make a complaint to the Ombudsman on their behalf, including a member of the House of Lords.

The Senior Deputy Speaker

House of Lords: Emergencies

Lord Storey: To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker how many evacuation procedures have been carried out in the Palace of Westminster and other parts of the Lords estate in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

Lord Laming: The Senior Deputy Speaker has asked me, as Chairman of the Services Committee, to respond on his behalf.The table below shows the evacuations from Lords parts of the Parliamentary Estate in the last five years. YearEvacuations due to false alarmsEvacuation drills2012Millbank House 6; Victoria Tower 1Palace of Westminster 1; Millbank House 1; Fielden House 1; 6/7 Old Palace Yard 12013Millbank House 5; Victoria Tower 1Palace of Westminster 1; Millbank House 1; Fielden House 1; 6/7 Old Palace Yard 12014Millbank House 1; Fielden House 3; 6/7 Old Palace Yard 1; Victoria Tower 2Palace of Westminster 1; Millbank House 1; Fielden House 12015Millbank House 3; Fielden House 3Palace of Westminster 1; Millbank House 1; Fielden House 12016 (Jan – Nov)Millbank House 8; Fielden House 10; 6/7 Old Palace Yard 1Palace of Westminster 2; Millbank House 1; Fielden House 1

Department for Education

Faith Schools: Admissions

Baroness Lister of Burtersett: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the proposal to drop the 50 per cent cap on religious selection in faith schools, what consideration they have given to the finding of the Education Policy Institute, in its report Faith Schools, Pupil Performance and Social Selection, published in December, that the average faith school admits fewer pupils from poor backgrounds than the average non-faith school.

Viscount Younger of Leckie: The EPI report fails to recognise the fact that the government’s proposals are about creating more good school places for more parents in more parts of the country by giving them more choice. Our proposals to expand the number of good school places available to parents will help more young people have the chance to go as far as their talents will take them.Faith schools are among the highest performing schools in the country, with more primary and secondary faith schools judged good or outstanding than their non-faith counterparts[1]. Faith schools are popular with parents and the removal of the 50% faith cap will enable the establishment of even more good schools. [1]Ofsted official statistics: Maintained schools and academies inspections and outcomes as at 31 March 2016 shows faith schools are more likely to be good or outstanding as compared to non-faith schools (89% as compared to 86% at primary; 81% as compared to 75% at secondary).

Grammar Schools: Admissions

Lord Murphy of Torfaen: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the proportion of deprived children in existing grammar schools in comparison to non-selective schools.

Viscount Younger of Leckie: In January 2016, 2.5% of pupils in grammar schools were eligible for free school meals whereas 13.8% of pupils were eligible for free school meals in non-selective secondary schools.

Grammar Schools

Lord Murphy of Torfaen: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they plan to ensure that pupils from the most deprived areas are not negatively impacted by new grammar schools.

Lord Murphy of Torfaen: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what measures they are considering to ensure that selective schools serve pupils from deprived backgrounds.

Viscount Younger of Leckie: Our consultation ‘Schools that work for everyone’ sets our expectation that both existing and new selective schools should do more to extend access to disadvantaged children and to support other local schools to help drive up standards across the system, for example by sponsoring an underperforming school or setting up a non-selective school.We will consider the responses to the consultation carefully, and will set out our response in the Spring of 2017.

Church Schools

Lord Murphy of Torfaen: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the progress made by disadvantaged pupils in Church schools.

Viscount Younger of Leckie: Revised key stage 2 and provisional key stage 4 performance data[1][2] shows that Church schools continue to perform well and many help their pupils progress at a higher rate than non-faith schools. It is also the case that pupils from poorer backgrounds perform better[3] at faith secondary schools than at other secondary schools.We want more good schools and to enable high quality providers to establish them. Our consultation, Schools that Work for Everyone, is aimed at creating more good schools, including Church schools, so they can improve the life chances of young people so they have the chance to go as far as their talents will take them.   [1] Please see table N7b in the attached copy of 'National curriculum assessments at key stage 2 in England, 2016 (revised).[2] Please see table 2c in the attached copy of Provisional GCSE and equivalent results in England, 2105 to 2016.[3] Based on the percentage of pupils achieving 5+ A*-C GCSEs including English and mathematics in 2015



National curriculum assessments at key stage 2 in 
(PDF Document, 1.17 MB)




Provisional GCSE and equivalent results in England
(PDF Document, 1.23 MB)

Schools: Birmingham

Lord Blencathra: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have any plans to appoint a commission of inquiry to investigate schools in Birmingham where pupils are reported to be subject to Islamist fundamentalist teaching.

Viscount Younger of Leckie: The Government is committed to ensuring that all children learn in a safe environment, protected from extremist or hateful views wherever they are receiving education, and the Department for Education is taking firm action where concerns arise.We have more power than ever before to intervene in schools causing concern and we take swift, decisive action to make sure every child has access to the best possible education.Ofsted inspects schools on the requirement to actively promote the fundamental British values of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and respect and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs, as well as on the breadth of the curriculum, which should prepare pupils for life in modern Britain.We have provided additional resources to Ofsted to allow them to increase their investigative work into unregistered independent schools. Wherever such schools are found to be teaching hate or intolerance, we take action to close them and prosecute those operating them.We have also taken steps to increase oversight of out-of-school settings, such as clubs and weekend schools. Prevent duty statutory guidance sets out the expectations on local authorities to take steps to understand the range of out-of-school settings in their areas and to ensure that children attending such settings are safeguarded, including from the risk of being drawn into extremism and terrorism. We set out plans to introduce a new system of regulation for out-of-school settings in our call for evidence which closed earlier this year. The proposed system would allow Ofsted to close such settings where there was evidence that they were engaging in extremist teaching or failing to adequately safeguard the children in their care. We received a large number of responses and will set out next steps in due course.Birmingham City Council has made improvements to the way it runs its children’s services, but this progress has not yet gone far enough, fast enough. That is why we are working with the Council on the development of a voluntary Trust to make sure children and families in this area receive the best possible care and support. The City Council and the Department have jointly appointed Andrew Christie as Chair of this Trust.

Ministry of Justice

Public Sector: Interpreters

Baroness Coussins: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to include interpreting in public services within the list of excepted professions in Schedule 1 to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975.

Lord Keen of Elie: The Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 lists areas of activity and proceedings which are exceptions to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (ROA), meaning that the employer or other relevant body is entitled to ask for, and take into account, certain spent cautions and convictions (as well as unspent convictions). For inclusion within the Exceptions Order, there has to be compelling evidence that there exists an exceptional reason for the disclosure of the spent caution or conviction. For example, where the role involves working with vulnerable people. For the ROA to continue to be effective in achieving its aims of improving access to employment and rehabilitation, exceptions to the Act should only be sought where there is good reason. The exceptions take into account the role the person is carrying out and not necessarily the profession or job they do (unless it is proportionate to protect all roles in a job or profession). Interpreters in certain public service positions may already be included in the Exceptions Order, for example those working within prisons or those working in certain roles with children or vulnerable adults. It would not be appropriate or proportionate, however, to introduce a blanket provision to cover all such interpreters.

Offenders: Health

Lord Patel of Bradford: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether Community Rehabilitation Companies are required to collect data on mental health, physical health or substance misuse; and if so, whether that data will be published, when, and in what format.

Lord Henley: Community Rehabilitation Companies gather information on an individual offenders’ mental health, health and substance misuse as part of establishing their rehabilitation and resettlement needs and risk assessment. This information is not collated by the Ministry of Justice centrally. We are carrying out a comprehensive review of the probation service to improve outcomes for offenders and communities and will publish the outcome of this in due course.

Prison Sentences

Lord Beecham: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by Baroness Goldie on 22 November (HL Deb, col 1839) concerning the revision of the statutory Parole Board Rules so that parole panels can release imprisonment for public protection prisoners without progressing to an oral hearing, what other measures have been introduced to ensure that prisoners get a thorough assessment.

Lord Keen of Elie: Public protection remains our key priority; however, the recent HMIP report rightly highlights concerns around the management of IPP prisoners. We have set up a new unit within the Ministry of Justice to improve progression for all IPP prisoners and are working with the Parole Board to improve the efficiency of the parole process. Examples of the initiatives being taken forward as part of the action plan include the need for other Progression Regimes, in addition to the one at HMP Warren Hill; central case reviews led by psychologists and policy specialists of IPP cases where there has been no progression to open conditions despite two or more post tariff parole reviews; and enhanced case management approaches within both NOMS and the Parole Board.

Magistrates' Courts: North East

Lord Beecham: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consultations have taken place about the decision that only trials will be heard at Newcastle Magistrates Court, with domestic violence and weekday remands being heard at Bedlington Magistrates Court, some road traffic accident cases at Gateshead Magistrates Court, and all other new cases being heard at North Shields Magistrates Court; what consideration has been given to the cost and time impact on parties, witnesses and legal representatives of relocating hearings between those four courts; and what is the estimated saving to HM Courts and Tribunal service of the changes in venue.

Lord Keen of Elie: No decision has been made to alter the current listing patterns in Northumbria. The Northumbria Judicial Business Group will consider proposals for changes at their next meeting on 5th January 2017 following which there will be full engagement and consultation with local practitioners in respect of any proposed changes and their impact on court users.

Ministry of Defence

Turkey: Military Coups

The Marquess of Lothian: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the failed coup in Turkey on 16 July on the participation of Turkish military personnel in NATO commands.

Earl Howe: Her Majesty's Government agrees with the position of the NATO Secretary General who has acknowledged the consequences of the attempted coup in the Republic of Turkey, but has also stated that routine changes in personnel within the NATO command structure continue. It is his expectation that these will continue to be filled. How this is done, is for the Republic of Turkey to decide.Turkey is a NATO ally and a valued UK partner. We enjoy a strong bilateral relationship based on trust and shared interests. We have an open, constructive dialogue on a range of issues, and this will continue.

Armed Forces: Education

Lord Moonie: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Earl Howe on 13 December (HL3894), whether (1) the Army, (2) the Royal Navy, and (3) the Royal Air Force, hold information on the type of school attended by service personnel; and if so, in what format that information is held, and whether it is broken down by rank.

Earl Howe: Where such information is held it will be as part of the individual's joining information, completed as part of the enlistment process. This will largely be in manuscript form, and could not be identified without disproportionate cost.This information will not have any reference to rank, as those entering the Armed Forces generally do so as a recruit or cadet.

Special Forces

Lord Hodgson of Astley Abbotts: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether UK special forces have adopted new rules of engagement as a result of concerns about prosecution for war crimes.

Earl Howe: It is a long-standing Government policy not to comment on specific Rules of Engagement. However, UK Forces will always operate in accordance with UK law and with the UK's interpretation of international law.

Department for Work and Pensions

Disadvantaged

Baroness Lister of Burtersett: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the proposed green paper on Social Justice will give consideration to the enactment of section 1 of the Equality Act 2010.

Lord Freud: The Prime Minister is clear that tackling poverty and disadvantage, and delivering real social reform, is a priority for this Government. The Department for Work and Pensions is leading work across Government to bring forward a social justice green paper in the New Year. This will identify and address the root causes of poverty, building upon the two statutory indicators set out in the Welfare Reform and Work Act 2016.

*No heading*

Lord Jones of Cheltenham: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will give an assurance to UK citizens living in the EU and in receipt of the UK basic state pension that they will continue to receive the annual pension increase when the UK leaves the EU.

Lord Freud: Negotiating the details of the UK’s exit will take some time. The status of pensioners will need careful consideration and state pensions will be considered as part of the negotiations.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Dogs: Smuggling

Baroness Redfern: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what guidance they have given to Border Force regarding the illegal trafficking of puppies.

Baroness Redfern: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they have taken to minimise the illegal trafficking of puppies.

Lord Gardiner of Kimble: Defra takes the issue of illegal trafficking of puppies very seriously. The action we have taken to tackle illegal puppy movements covers the key areas in the supply of trafficked puppies. Responsibility for stopping the illegal movement of puppies begins in the country where they are born. Where puppies have been discovered to have been moved into the UK using falsely certified pet passport paperwork my officials have raised the issue with authorities in the relevant countries. We also have effective border controls in place. These require all pet animals travelling into Great Britain on approved routes to have documentary and identity checks at the border. There are stringent penalties available against individual found to be breaking the rules by illegally moving dogs into the country. Defra and the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) have and continue to work constructively with other government agencies and animal welfare charities to share intelligence on illegal movements of puppies. APHA has provided Border Force officials with the requirements that dogs and puppies entering the UK must meet. APHA works closely with Border Force colleagues to assist them in reducing the illegal trafficking of puppies. Finally the illegal trafficking of puppies is ultimately driven by demand. Defra has published guidance for consumers on the responsible purchase of pet animals. It has worked closely with the Pet Advertising Advisory Group to drive up standards for online advertisements making potential pet owners and website operators more aware of rogue dealers and this work will continue.

Breeding and Sale of Dogs (Welfare) Act 1999

Baroness Redfern: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the effectiveness of the Breeding and Sale of Dogs (Welfare) Act 1999.

Lord Gardiner of Kimble: The Government proposes to modernise the laws on Animal Establishments Licensing Schemes including the laws that regulate dog breeding and selling. This proposal was supported by the majority of those that responded to our earlier public consultation.

Dogs: Sales

Baroness Redfern: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many puppy dealers have been (1) prosecuted, or (2) fined for selling puppies without a licence.

Lord Gardiner of Kimble: The number of defendants that have been proceeded against at magistrates’ courts and thereafter been found guilty and sentenced at all courts for running a breeding establishment for dogs without a licence from a local authority, in England and Wales, from 2011 to 2015, can be viewed in the table below. It is possible that others may have been prosecuted under the Pet Animals Act 1951 for selling dogs without a pet shop licence. Records held for convictions under the 1951 Act do not, however, show what species of animal were involved. Prosecutions under the Breeding of Dogs Act 1973Outcome20112012201320142015Proceeded against--157Found guilty---55Sentenced---55Fined---45  The figures given in the table relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences, it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe.Every effort has been made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. It is important to note, however, that this data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.  Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services – Ministry of Justice. Data extracted on 9 December 2016

Home Office

Ivory: Sales

Baroness Jones of Whitchurch: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what further training they intend to provide to the police and the National Crime Agency in preparation for their plan for a complete ban on the sale of ivory.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: With the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the Home Office funds the National Wildlife Crime Unit, which provides intelligence, analysis and specialist assistance to individual police forces and other law enforcement agencies in the United Kingdom that allows them to deal effectively with wildlife crime investigations, including cases that involve the illegal trading of ivory.The Unit will provide briefing notes for all UK police forces with regards to the enforcement of any changes arising from the Government’s plans to ban the sale of any post-1947 worked ivory. The police may also receive expert advice about ivory from organisations such as the Animal and Plant Health Agency and the Joint Nature Conservation Committee. Police and NCA are given appropriate training as their deployment requires.

Asylum: Children

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether unaccompanied asylum-seeking children brought to the UK under section 67 of the Immigration Act 2016 will be given refugee status or discretionary leave to remain.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: All children transferred here under section 67 of the Immigration Act 2016 will be expected to make an asylum claim in the UK, which will be considered according to normal processes. We aim to decide 98 per cent of straightforward asylum claims within six months. Where a child does not qualify for asylum and it is clear that safe and adequate reception arrangements are not available in their home country, they will be granted leave to remain under the Immigration Rules for 30 months or until they reach the age of 17 and a half, whichever is shorter.

Habitual Residence Test

Lord McColl of Dulwich: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bates on 29 June 2015 (HL541), what measures have been put in place to make it easier for those victims of human trafficking whose circumstances make it difficult to provide evidence to meet the requirements of the habitual residence test to demonstrate that they do meet the residence requirements of that test.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: A significant number of victims of modern slavery who are identified in the UK are provided support through the government funded victim-care contract for 90 days or longer.Where this is the case, we have ensured that the support provider is able to supply the Department for Work and Pensions with a letter as evidence that the individual has been habitually resident in the UK for more than three months.For the remaining cases where they receive support for less than 90 days, evidence may be provided by the police or other statutory agencies involved in the case confirming the victim has been living in the UK for more than three months, where such evidence exists.

Female Genital Mutilation

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the statutory mandatory reporting duty in relation to female genital mutilation.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many reports have been made by teachers, social workers and health professionals, so far, to the police regarding known cases of female genital mutilation involving victims under the age of 18.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will require cross-government working in order to ensure a cohesive approach is adopted in addressing female genital mutilation.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is a crime and it is child abuse. We will not tolerate a practice that can cause extreme and lifelong physical and psychological suffering to women and girls.Mandatory reporting of FGM came into force in October 2015 and requires regulated health and social care professionals and teachers to report known cases in under 18s to the police. Figures are not collated centrally. However, we continue to engage with the police, professional bodies and wider stakeholders to monitor its implementation.

Middle East: Visas

The Lord Bishop of Coventry: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have any plans to review why the Archbishop of Mosul, the Archbishop of St Matthews and the Archbishop of Homs and Hama were refused visas to travel to the UK from Iraq and Syria to attend the consecration of the Syriac Orthodox Cathedral in London.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: All applications are considered on their individual merits and in line with the Immigration Rules. In order to safeguard an individual’s personal information and comply with the Data Protection Act 1998 the Home Office does not routinely comment on individual cases.

Middle East: Visas

The Lord Bishop of Coventry: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to review their visa policy towards those travelling to the UK from Iraq and Syria.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: All applications for visas, entry clearance and leave to enter at the UK border are considered on their merits, in accordance with the criteria set out in the published Immigration Rules , regardless of the applicant’s nationality or where they live. A variety of factors may be taken into account when considering the application, but that would depend upon the applicant’s personal circumstances and what they had applied to do in the UK.

Middle East: Visas

The Lord Bishop of Coventry: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many visas in 2015 and 2016 were (1) issued, and (2) refused, to those applying to travel to the UK from Iraq and Syria.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The latest quarterly Home Office immigration statistics on entry clearance visas are published in 'Immigration Statistics, April - June 2016', available from the Gov.uk website. The information on applications for Iraq and Syria is set out below.Entry clearance visa applications and resolution by selected country of nationalityQuarterCountry of nationalityApplicationsResolvedGranted%Refused%WithdrawnLapsed2015 Q1Iraq3,1833,2481,35342%1,81456%8012015 Q2Iraq3,4173,3201,27338%1,93958%10802015 Q3Iraq3,5343,4861,28437%2,17462%2802015 Q4Iraq2,5642,8461,06137%1,75362%3202016 Q1Iraq2,2392,27997643%1,20653%9702016 Q2Iraq2,8042,5931,10443%1,47157%1802016 Q3Iraq2,6922,7321,36950%1,34349%200  QuarterCountry of nationalityApplicationsResolvedGranted%Refused%WithdrawnLapsed2015 Q1Syria1,9291,76872941%1,02258%1702015 Q2Syria2,3322,24689240%1,33459%1732015 Q3Syria2,8122,9101,33146%1,56554%1222015 Q4Syria4,1314,1362,96672%1,14528%2412016 Q1Syria2,2682,4031,38558%99641%2022016 Q2Syria3,5953,3912,39171%98829%1202016 Q3Syria3,5673,8342,79073%1,03127%130  Notes: The table shows the number of entry clearance applications resolved, and of those, the proportion refused. Includes main applicants and dependants, and visitor and transit visas.Source: Immigration Statistics, July - September 2016, Home Office, table vi_02_q

Female Genital Mutilation Protection Orders

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to ensure that police forces and local authorities are making use of female genital mutilation protection orders.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many children have been prevented from leaving the country because it is believed they are going abroad to undergo female genital mutilation.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is a crime and it is child abuse. We will not tolerate a practice that can cause extreme and lifelong physical and psychological suffering to women and girls.FGM Protection Orders (FGMPOs) were fast-tracked for implementation in July 2015, to protect girls before the school holidays started. The most recent data shows that in the period July 2015 – June 2016, 68 orders were granted. FGMPOs may include conditions to protect victims or potential victims, including preventing them from being taken out of the UK. Centrally held data is not disaggregated to show the actual number of victims prevented from travelling.We continue to work with the police and other agencies to ensure that FGMPOs are being used as widely as possible. On 1 April, we issued statutory guidance on FGM for all frontline professionals which includes information on FGMPOs. The Home Office-led FGM Unit delivers an ongoing programme of outreach across the UK which includes providing support to local areas and speaking at awareness raising events. The Unit recently visited all forces in England and Wales to understand their response to FGM and raise awareness of examples of best practice, including on the use of FGMPOs.In addition, Border Force plays a vital role in helping to identify and protect potential victims of FGM travelling to and from the UK. A rolling programme of joint police-Border Force operations take place at airports during the school holidays targeting inbound and outbound flights to and from countries with a high prevalence of FGM, forced marriage and human trafficking. Border Force works in close partnership with other agencies, including social services, the police and non government organisations.

Stalking

Baroness Nye: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by Baroness Williams of Trafford on 24 November (HL Deb, col 2041), how frequently individuals convicted of stalking are assessed and monitored by the police.

Baroness Nye: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the effectiveness of one-to-one programmes for serial stalkers.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: Stalking is an horrific crime which can have a devastating impact on victims and this Government is determined to tackle it. The monitoring and assessment of individuals convicted of stalking is an operational matter for Chief Constables and Police and Crime Commissioners. Data is not held centrally. To support effective assessment and monitoring by the police, details of those convicted of stalking is held on the Police National Computer and, where appropriate, on the Violent and Sexual Offenders Register.The Government’s Violence against Women and Girls Strategy published in March 2016 makes clear that a sustainable approach to preventing abuse is dependent on changing the attitude and behaviour of perpetrators. Through the Police Innovation Fund the Government is supporting, promoting and evaluating innovative models to tackle perpetrators’ behaviour and will continue to do so.On 7 December the Government announced that it will introduce a Stalking Protection Order to help protect victims at the earliest possible opportunity and deter perpetrators. The new order will be available to the police on application to the courts and will allow the imposition of both restrictions and other measures such as a requirement to attend a treatment programme.The College of Policing’s What Works Centre for Crime Reduction is working to build the evidence base for effective intervention with perpetrators.

Police: Mental Health Services

Baroness Smith of Basildon: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by Baroness Williams of Trafford on 23 November (HL Deb, col 1931), (1) which authority will be responsible for requesting details of local areas' use of any Taser in a mental health setting, and (2) what protocols will be used to determine how, and when, any such request is made.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: All police forces in England and Wales are expected to publish their own record level Use of Force data (including in mental health settings). We expect a sub-set of the data collected to form part of the overall Home Office 2017-18 Annual Data Requirement, which will be published on an annual basis.The Government has written to each Police and Crime Commissioner, Chief Constable and Chair of local Mental Health Crisis Care Concordat Partnerships to ask them to make arrangements for the joint identification and scrutiny of any use of Taser in a mental health setting in their areas. It is a matter for local partnerships to determine the most appropriate arrangements for doing so.

Asylum: LGBT People

Lord Scriven: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by Baroness Williams of Trafford on 14 December (HL Deb, cols. 1235-6), why authority from the Immigration Minister, which was stated at the Home Office Strategic Engagement Group in September as being required to publish statistics from the casework database to show the number of people seeking asylum on the basis of sexual orientation, remains outstanding.

Lord Scriven: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, concerning asylum claims relating to gender and sexual identity, when they expect the data on the asylum casework database to have been quality assured to a sufficient standard of accuracy to enable their publication.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The Home Office remains committed to publishing information on the number of people claiming asylum on the basis of sexual orientation. Any data publications must be in line with reporting standards. Work is ongoing to assure the quality of the data for publication.

Department for International Development

Syria: Refugees

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how much aid the UK has given to Greece to help accommodate and care for refugees from Syria.

Lord Bates: DFID has provided £27 million in humanitarian assistance to help tackle the refugee and migrant crisis in Greece since October 2015. This has provided life-saving assistance, according to need, to refugees and migrants from Syria and other countries. The support includes accommodation, food, water and hygiene kits.

Overseas Aid

The Earl of Sandwich: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how much development aid the UK reported to the Development Assistance Committee for the last two years for which figures are available, broken down by (1) humanitarian and development aid, and (2) the most recent estimate of humanitarian aid to Syria; and how this compares with aid provided by (a) the USA, and (b) Russia.

Lord Bates: The latest available figures published for all donors by the Development Assistance Committee (DAC) are for 2013 and 2014. Final data for 2015 will be available by the end of December. The UK has published its 2015 ODA in Statistics on International Development 2016, which includes £258 million for Syria ($394 million, using the Official Exchange Rate conversion published by the World Bank).  (Figures in US dollars, millions, as reported by the DAC)UK US Russia 2013 2014 2013 2014 2013 2014 Total Official Development Assistance (ODA)10,959.77311,838.00927,049.09928,263.415Not reportedNot reportedOf which is humanitarian aid1,291.0191,842.2094,887.3326,001.323Not reportedNot reportedOf which is humanitarian aid for Syria197.300163.853738.079596.267Not reportedNot reported Russia is not a member of the DAC but has provided voluntarily its total ODA for 2015, which includes $22 million for Syria. However, a comparison with the UK and US cannot be made at this stage because the DAC has not yet published 2015 data for the UK or US.

HM Treasury

Financial Services: Taxation

Lord Taylor of Warwick: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the extent to which tax receipts are reliant on the financial services sector.

Lord Young of Cookham: The UK is a global hub for financial services and it is therefore an important sector for the UK in terms of investment, employment and tax revenues. This is illustrated by the fact that the banking sector alone contributed £24.4 billion in PAYE and corporate taxes in 2015-16. A recent report published by the City of London Corporation estimated the total tax contribution of the financial sector at £71.4 billion.

EU Countries: Tax Avoidance

Lord Harries of Pentregarth: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the appeal in Luxembourg of Antoine Deltour against his conviction in June for theft, what steps they are taking to protect whistleblowers who expose companies’ aggressive tax avoidance schemes when those schemes are organised in conjunction with the governments of other EU member states.

Lord Young of Cookham: The Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 ensures that workers who raise concerns of wrongdoing to their employer or a relevant external body (by making what is known as a ‘protected disclosure’) and suffer detriment as a result may seek redress through an Employment Tribunal. With regards to information on tax avoidance and evasion HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) gathers information from a number of sources including whistle-blowers. Any information which is provided to HMRC is treated as confidential and details of the individual providing the information will not be divulged, without consent, except where compelled by law. HMRC does not offer immunity from prosecution within the UK or in a third country where that country’s legislation is at odds with UK Legislation.

Office for Budget Responsibility

Lord Grocott: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Young of Cookham on 12 December (HL3687), whether they have made a separate assessment of the accuracy of the forecasts for the economy and public finances made by the Office for Budget Responsibility since 2010.

Lord Young of Cookham: The Budget Responsibility and National Audit Act 2011 requires the Non-executive members of the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) to commission an external review every five years, to examine the content and quality of the reports published by the OBR. To this end, the Page review was published in September 2014. HM Treasury published its own review of the OBR in 2015, building on evidence from the Page review.

Public Sector: Pensions

Baroness Altmann: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether a public sector worker who earns less than £11,000 a year, and who contributes to a public sector pension scheme, receives the equivalent of basic rate tax relief on their contributions.

Baroness Altmann: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many workers in the public sector earn less than £11,000.

Lord Young of Cookham: The Government does not centrally collate data on the annual earnings of public sector workers. Defined benefit public sector pension schemes operate on a net pay basis. The Partnership scheme, which is a defined contribution scheme open to civil servants and other public sector workers, operates a relief at source system for payment of pension contributions.

Child Tax Credit

Baroness Gould of Potternewton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they have taken to implement the proposal to limit child tax credits to the first two children in a household.

Lord Young of Cookham: In future, all families - those in receipt of benefits and those supporting themselves solely through work - will be faced with the same sorts of financial considerations when making decisions about having more children. At Summer Budget 2015 the Government announced that families will no longer be able to claim additional support through Child Tax Credit (CTC) for third or subsequent children in a family where the child is born after April 2017. This policy was legislated for in the Welfare Reform and Work Act which received royal assent in March and will come into effect from April 2017.

Department for Exiting the European Union

Brexit

Viscount Waverley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have identified each and every issue which requires separate negotiation for leaving the EU; and if so, whether they will publish a list of those issues.

Lord Bridges of Headley: The Government is undertaking a wide-ranging analysis of 50 sectors and cross-cutting regulatory issues. The Government will set out its broad plans before triggering Article 50 with the important caveat that nothing we do or say should undermine the UK’s negotiating position.

Department for International Trade

Imports

Lord Empey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Price on 8 December (HL3478), whether their commitment to promoting UK exports of goods and services includes the adoption of an import substitution policy; and if so, which goods and services are included in that policy.

Lord Price: This Government’s trade policy will position the UK as an open, outward looking economy and a world leader for free and fair trade, maximising opportunities for UK exporters. Protectionist barriers are against the interests of the UK consumer and the wider UK economy.

Department of Health

General Practitioners: Greater London

Baroness Kramer: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what was the ratio of GPs to patients in each Clinical Commissioning Group in London in each of the last five years.

Lord Prior of Brampton: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 16 November 2016.The correct answer should have been:

Due to the size of the data, the information requested is shown in the attached table.


GP to Patient ratio table
(Excel SpreadSheet, 95.5 KB)




GP to Patient ratio table amended
(Excel SpreadSheet, 51.55 KB)

Lord Prior of Brampton: Due to the size of the data, the information requested is shown in the attached table.


GP to Patient ratio table
(Excel SpreadSheet, 95.5 KB)




GP to Patient ratio table amended
(Excel SpreadSheet, 51.55 KB)

Nurses

Baroness Smith of Basildon: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have carried out a workforce future planning assessment of the number of nurses needed to sustain the demand in services; and if so, what were the results.

Lord Prior of Brampton: Health Education England (HEE) is responsible for ensuring that there is sufficient future supply of staff to meet the workforce requirements of the English health system, taking into account issues such as demographic changes. In delivering its annual workforce plan for England, HEE undertakes extensive discussions with National Health Service organisations, arms-length bodies and Royal Colleges to understand future workforce requirements. HEE takes into account future demand for services in arriving at the final numbers it will commission. NHS organisations are responsible for undertaking local recruitment and retention schemes to ensure they have access to the workforce they need to deliver care to patients.

Nurses: Resignations

Baroness Smith of Basildon: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what analysis and assessments they have undertaken on the reasons for nurses leaving the nursing profession.

Lord Prior of Brampton: Individual National Health Service trusts supported by NHS England have responsibility for the shape and structure of their workforce. NHS Digital publishes information on reasons for staff leaving. A table showing reasons for nurses leaving NHS trusts and clinical commissioning groups between April 2015 and April 2016 is attached.



Reasons for Leaving Nursing
(Excel SpreadSheet, 20.08 KB)

Pancreatic Cancer: Research

Lord Porter of Spalding: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the five-year survival rate for patients suffering from pancreatic cancer, what funding has been provided for research into pancreatic cancer since 2010.

Lord Prior of Brampton: The Department’s National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) funds and supports research into all aspects of human health. Spend on research funded directly by NIHR is categorised by Health Research Classification System (HRCS) categories, including ‘cancer’. There are no HRCS health sub-categories, such as for pancreatic cancer. The NIHR invested £745 million in cancer research from 2010-11 to 2015-16 (see table below). This figure includes investment in the NIHR Liverpool Pancreatic Biomedical Research Unit, which carries out research into pancreatic cancer and other pancreatic diseases. YearCancer research2010-11£100,9012011-12£104,1042012-13£133,2392013-14£129,8932014-15£134,7152015-16£142,433Total£745,285 Medical Research Council (MRC) spend on research into pancreatic cancer since 2011-12 is provided below. No directly comparable figure is available for 2010-11. YearPancreatic Cancer Research2011-12£0.37 million2012-13£1.11 million2013-14£1.66 million2014-15£2.22 million2015-16£2.66 million To provide context, in 2015, the MRC’s overall expenditure on cancer research was £90.3 million (calendar year figure, source: National Cancer Research Institute). This figure includes a broad portfolio of site-specific and general underpinning cancer research, some of which will be relevant to research into pancreatic cancer, as it is often the case that research relevant to one site may also have implications for other forms of cancer.

Hospital Beds

Lord Wills: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the transfer of care rate for each local authority in England; and what assessment they have made of the reasons for any differences in the transfer of care rate between local authorities.

Lord Prior of Brampton: NHS England compiles and publishes monthly delayed transfers of care data. The data is available by each local authority and National Health Service trust, and includes the reason for the delay against a defined set of 10 categories. The data set is published in an online-only, interactive format. Delays have multiple causes and as a result there is variation between local authorities. A wide-ranging package of support is in place to help areas improve transfers out of hospital and reduce delays, including work as part of Accident and Emergency Improvement Plans to understand and address delays in hospital discharge and promote good practice. The NHS and local government have also developed new resources, including a high impact change model for reducing delayed transfers of care. In addition, the Emergency Care Improvement Programme provides tailored support to local systems to support rapid and sustained improvement in performance.

NHS: Migrant Workers

Lord Jones of Cheltenham: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many NHS employees were born in other EU member states.

Lord Prior of Brampton: The number of National Health Service employees who were born in other European Union (EU) member states is not collected. NHS Digital publishes data on the nationality of staff working in the NHS in England. Nationality is self-reported, the value entered by an individual, and therefore may reflect their cultural heritage rather than their country of birth. As at September 2016, of those NHS employees who declared a nationality, 59,796 were from an EU member state other than the United Kingdom.

Health Services: Per Capita Costs

Lord Moonie: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the ranking of spending on healthcare per capita amongst EU member states.

Lord Prior of Brampton: The latest Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) figures for total, per capita expenditure on healthcare that have been provided by the countries themselves are for 2014. These figures are only available for the 22 European Union member states that are also members of the OECD. They indicate that the United Kingdom ranked 10th out of 22 for total, per capita expenditure on healthcare in 2014. Rankings for all 22 EU member states that are also members of the OECD can be found in Table 1. OECD estimates for 2015 from their ‘Health at a Glance: Europe 2016’ report suggest that the United Kingdom’s ranking remains unchanged at 10th out of all 28 EU member states and that total, per capita expenditure on healthcare is slightly above the EU28 average. However, these figures are yet to be verified by the United Kingdom and a further 19 countries in the report.   Table 1: Per capita expenditure on healthcare by the 22 EU member states that are also members of the OECD in 2014 - all functions, all financing schemes and all providers (current prices and current purchasing power parity)CountryRank - 2014Austria6Belgium8Czech Republic16Denmark7Estonia20Finland11France9Germany3Greece17Hungary19Ireland5Italy12Latvia22Luxembourg1Netherlands2Poland21Portugal15Slovak Republic18Slovenia14Spain13Sweden4United Kingdom10 Source: OECD.Stat, Health Expenditure and Financing, 2014.

Neuroblastoma

Baroness Masham of Ilton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to uphold the verdict of the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence with regard to dinutuximab for children with neuroblastoma.

Baroness Masham of Ilton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government why dinutuximab was referred to the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence under the Single Technology Appraisal methodology and not the Highly Specialised Technology programme.

Baroness Masham of Ilton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to restore the availability of, and access to, the anti-GD2 antibody which had previously been approved.

Lord Prior of Brampton: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has not yet published its final guidance on dinutuximab (Unituxin) as a maintenance treatment after therapy for high-risk neuroblastoma. NICE’s Appraisal Committee is currently considering its draft guidance in light of the Appeal Panel’s decision to uphold an appeal against its final appraisal determination. Dinutuximab was referred to NICE under the single technology appraisal programme following its consideration through the established topic selection process including a public consultation and a scoping workshop with stakeholders. NICE is also currently appraising another anti-GD2 antibody product, APN311, for use in the treatment of high-risk neuroblastoma. APN311 is not yet licensed for use in the United Kingdom and has only been available in the UK in clinical trials. Neither treatment has been routinely commissioned for National Health Service patients in England.